Smile
by Angus MacSpon
Summary: What if ... Genma and Soun tried an INTELLIGENT plan to bring the families together?


Genma coughed. "Oh, he's coming along very well," he said, "very well  
indeed. Give him another year or two, and he'll be ready." He cleared  
his throat, drumming his fingers on the bar-top. "And you? How are  
your daughters?"  
  
Soun laughed nervously. "Oh, fine, fine, just fine. No problems  
there."  
  
They looked at each other. They had another drink.  
  
"They're not going to be happy with this, are they?" said Soun at last.  
  
Genma studied the bottom of his glass. "Nope," he opined.  
  
"Maybe we should have told them about it sooner. Given them a chance to  
get used to the idea."  
  
Genma snorted. "Give them more chance to think of a way out of it, you  
mean. No, taking them by surprise is the best way. In the meantime,  
keep their minds on other things. Me, I'm thinking about taking the boy  
to China. Lots of good training opportunities over there. I found a  
brochure."  
  
"But when they find out ..." Soun began to whine.  
  
The barman, who had been surreptitiously listening to the two for some  
time, leaned across the bar and said, "Maybe what you need to try is a  
subtler approach."  
  
The two men blinked at him.  
  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Smile"  
by Angus MacSpon  
  
macspon@ihug.co.nz  
http://shell.ihug.co.nz/~macspon/fanfic/  
  
Based on characters created by Rumiko Takahashi.  
Comments and/or criticism welcome.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
Soun studied the postcard. [Hi. Bringing Ranma from China. Saotome.]  
He took a deep breath, and let it out again. He'd been preparing for  
this day for some time.  
  
"Kasumi?" he said to the nineteen-year-old in the kitchen. "Could I have  
a private word with you?"  
  
Kasumi looked up from the watermelon she'd been slicing. "Of course,  
Father," she said politely.  
  
He led her back into the living room, and the two sat down. Glancing at  
the postcard on the table once more, he said, "Kasumi, we are going to  
be having visitors."  
  
"Yes, Father?" She waited patiently for him to continue.  
  
"An old friend of mine, Genma Saotome, is arriving today after a long  
trip to China," he told her. "He is bringing his son with him, and the  
two of them will be staying for some time."  
  
"Oh." Kasumi blinked at him. From the look in her eyes, she was  
already planning how to minimise the disruption to the household. "I'll  
have to get the guest room prepared --"  
  
Soun held up a hand. "That's not all." He licked his lips quickly,  
and said, "Kasumi, there is an agreement between Saotome and myself,  
made many years ago, that our two families are to be joined. His son  
Ranma will marry one of my daughters."  
  
Her eyes widened fractionally. "Oh," she said, in quite a different  
tone. "And you want ..." Her voice trailed off. "How old is he?" she  
asked, a little wistfully. "I wouldn't want to marry a --"  
  
He burst into laughter. "No, no!" he exclaimed. "I wasn't thinking of  
you!" He watched her face carefully. There was just the faintest hint  
of irritation there at being so casually ruled out. Good.  
  
"No, I was thinking that Nabiki would be the best choice," he said  
calmly.  
  
"Nabiki?" Kasumi thought about it. "Father, Nabiki will not welcome  
such an arrangement. She is too ... non-traditional." That was as  
close as Kasumi would come to criticism. "Perhaps --"  
  
"I had considered Akane," Soun admitted. "The boy is something of a  
martial artist, I'm told. But you know how she would react to such a  
proposal. And I really think that Nabiki would be the best choice.   
Consider --  
  
"You know how focused she is on money-making. She has few friends at  
school; those she does have are closer to business associates than true  
friends. She is a schemer, a plotter and a user, unhappy when she is  
not in control of any situation." He was exaggerating, of course; but  
sadly there was a germ of truth in what he said. "I think that this  
engagement might be just what she needs. A martial artist for a fiance  
would bring a new, less predictable element into her life. He would  
expand her horizons, and perhaps make her reassess her attitudes toward  
other people."  
  
He smiled. "And Nabiki herself would certainly broaden the horizons of  
any martial artist."  
  
"But Father, she'll never agree to this," Kasumi protested. "She'll  
be very unhappy if she's forced into --"  
  
Soun chuckled. "Of course. That is why I need your help, Kasumi."  
  
She blinked. "Me?"  
  
"Genma and I will not announce the engagement openly -- not at first. My  
old friend and his son will be coming to stay for a while, that is all.   
But while they are here --  
  
"I want you to befriend the boy, Kasumi. Treat him as a younger  
brother, if you like. Draw him into the family. Become his confidante.  
Even train with him." He gave her a gently reproving look. Kasumi had  
given up the Art years ago, when her mother died. "And all the while,  
you can be helping to draw Nabiki and the boy closer. Try to get them  
to spend time with each other. Discover their common interests. Do you  
see?"  
  
There was a definite glint of intrigue in Kasumi's eye. "You want me to  
play matchmaker."  
  
"Secretly, of course," he warned her. "If either of them realises what  
you're doing, they will resist you."  
  
She looked down demurely. "Yes, Father."  
  
He gave her a fond smile. "Then I leave the matter in your hands."  
  
****************  
  
Nabiki was in her room, paging through a manga magazine. Soun closed  
the door behind him, sat down, and explained the situation to her.  
  
She didn't take the news any better than he'd expected. "Excuse me?"  
she said in disbelief. "An arranged marriage? In this day and age? Do  
you seriously expect me to --"  
  
He laughed. It was a very good laugh, one that he'd been practising for  
months. There was just a faint hint of mockery to it, carefully  
calculated to drive Nabiki up the wall.  
  
"You?" he said. "Of course not! I'd never think that you might be --  
well, never mind that." He saw the barb sink home. "No," he went on  
casually, "I believe that Akane would be the best choice."  
  
"Akane?" For an instant, a mixture of relief and annoyance washed over  
her face. Then it was sealed away. "You think so?"  
  
"Of course," Soun said. "After all, the two are about the same age,  
and they're both martial artists. What better choice to carry on the  
family dojo?"  
  
"She is _not_ going to be happy about this," Nabiki said thoughtfully.  
She was already making plans of some kind, he could tell.  
  
"No. I'm aware that Akane has some ... difficulty dealing with the boys  
at school." He took a deep breath. "That is why I need your help to  
make this work, Nabiki."  
  
"Moi?" Suddenly she was all attention.  
  
He gave her a conspiratorial smile. "I truly believe that you are the  
only one who can make this work, daughter," he said. "I want you to  
help ... manoeuvre them. Subtly. From behind the scenes. Make a  
friend of the boy, show an interest in him. Make him feel comfortable.   
Maybe even help knock a few rough edges off him. And then, once you  
have a rapport with him, use that to help ... guide the two of them.   
Get them working together. Do you see what I mean?"  
  
He could see the light of challenge in her eye -- and, just perhaps, a  
hint of something more as well. "Well ... maybe it couldn't hurt to  
give it a try," she said. "He could even be useful; I might be able to  
set up ..." She trailed off, but he could see the wheels begin to turn  
inside her mind.  
  
He smiled at her, rose, and opened the door to leave. "I have every  
confidence in you, Nabiki," he said.  
  
****************  
  
"You want me to _what_?!" Akane burst out.  
  
"No, no," he told her soothingly. "Not you, of course! After all, you  
are rather young to take on such a responsibility. No, I thought that a  
somewhat more ... mature match for Ranma might be better."  
  
"Mature?" There was a hurt expression on her face.  
  
"I think that Kasumi would be the best match for him," Soun went on  
smoothly. "After all, Kasumi is not getting any younger, and I am  
rather afraid that she spends so much time caring for the rest of us  
that she has little chance to build a life for herself. She deserves  
the chance to have a more active, less sheltered life, and I think Ranma  
can give her that. And, of course, a boy who has spent the last ten  
years on the road, training, is badly in need of some stability in his  
life, and I am certain that Kasumi can provide that for him."  
  
"Ten years on the road, training," murmured Akane, apparently unaware  
that she was speaking. Then she blinked. "But Daddy ... engaging  
Kasumi to someone three years younger --"  
  
"I know, I know," he said gravely. "That is why I need your help,  
Akane."  
  
"My help?" She brightened immediately.  
  
"I want you to try and make a friend of the boy," Soun told her. "Work  
with him, help him get settled in. Show him the ropes at school. Train  
with him, too -- he's been going to some exotic places, so he might know  
a trick or two that you don't, and you can teach him the Tendo style as  
well. But at the same time --" He wagged a cautioning finger at her.   
"Draw him into the family. If he's going to stay here, he should help  
out -- that sort of thing. And you can use that to get him and Kasumi  
working together. Do you see? If you can persuade him to spend time  
with her, I know it won't be long before he realises what a sweet and  
kind young woman Kasumi's become -- and Kasumi will see that three years  
aren't such a big difference after all."  
  
"I don't know ..." Akane looked dubious.  
  
"I cannot do this without you, Akane," he said earnestly.  
  
There was firm resolution on her face. "I'll do it," she said.  
  
He gave her a big smile. "I'm sure you will," he told her.  
  
****************  
  
Not far away, a burly, muscular man and a teenaged boy were taking  
shelter from the rain.  
  
"This is the craziest idea I ever heard of," Ranma complained.  
  
"What can I do?" bemoaned Genma. "We were young, and times were  
different then. Joining the families seemed a fine idea. Now, of  
course, I see differently -- but family honour is family honour, and I  
made a promise to Tendo."  
  
"But -- oh, man, I don't wanna get married to some girl!"  
  
"Of course not," said Genma blandly. "Who would? But have no fear, boy  
-- I'll find a way around this. We'll probably have to stay with the  
family for a while -- a few weeks, perhaps -- until I can argue him into  
dropping the idea. Soun is rather traditional, you understand. But I'm  
sure I'll manage to persuade him ... eventually."  
  
A gust of rain blew in on them for a moment. Ranma took most of it.   
The teenaged boy abruptly became smaller ... and rounder.  
  
"Ahh, damn," she groaned. "Why'd this have to happen now?" Then she  
brightened suddenly. "Hey, maybe this could help!" she exclaimed. "I  
mean, none a them girls'd want ta marry another _girl_, would they?"  
  
"Err ..." Genma thought fast. Ancient, tragic Chinese curses hadn't  
featured in the plan that the barman had suggested two years before.  
"Possibly not," he admitted with some reluctance.  
  
Then an idea occurred to him. "Still, you wouldn't want to push it," he  
observed. "After all, you wouldn't want them to think you were some  
kind of freak or pervert, would you?"  
  
Ranma thought it over. "I guess not," she agreed glumly. "I s'pose  
we'd better find some hot water when it stops raining, huh?"  
  
"Don't take it so hard, boy," Genma said, slapping her on the back and  
feeling glad that most of the rain had hit Ranma. "After all, we won't  
be there all that long. Just a few weeks. Three or four months at the  
outside."  
  
"Months?" She stared at him. "Oh, man ..."  
  
"Think of it as a break from having to camp out all the time," Genma  
suggested. "A real house ... good food ... hot baths ..."  
  
"I guess so," Ranma grouched. "Long as I don't have to marry no girl."  
  
"Don't worry about it," Genma said genially. "Just remember, boy --  
be on your best behaviour. Polite. Helpful. Remember? Make yourself  
at home, try to fit in. Be friendly."  
  
"I'm always friendly!" Ranma protested.  
  
"Er ... yes. Even _more_ friendly than that. Try to make allies of the  
girls," he suggested. "Get them on your side. That way, maybe they  
won't mind the curse so much. Try to make them think of you as family.  
If you can manage that, then when the time comes, Soun won't be so  
likely to want to make you marry in." It was an argument that Genma was  
proud of; its sole flaw was that it didn't actually make any sense.   
"And above all," he added hurriedly, "don't mention the engagement to  
anyone! Keep it quiet, until I can persuade Soun to let the agreement  
lapse."  
  
"Oh, all right," Ranma mumbled. The clouds were beginning to break up.  
"Maybe this won't be so bad ..." she muttered.  
  
"Of course not!" Genma said. "Come on, let's get you some hot water."  
  
****************  
  
"I am Genma Saotome," Genma announced, "and this is my son, Ranma."  
  
Soun bowed. "These are my daughters," he said gravely, "Kasumi,  
Nabiki and Akane."  
  
Three teenaged girls and a boy smiled hesitantly at each other.  
  
  
-- END -- 


End file.
